


Trust In The Terrors That Wake

by CalamityK



Category: Naruto
Genre: Angst, Drabble, Feelings, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Iruka Comforts Kakashi, M/M, Night Terrors, Nightmares, This is a trust!fic, kakairu - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-09
Updated: 2016-11-09
Packaged: 2018-08-30 00:35:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 940
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8511904
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CalamityK/pseuds/CalamityK
Summary: Logically he knows he went to sleep in his bed, beside Iruka...
-----Or that one short drabble where Kakashi has nightmares and Iruka is there to calm him.





	

**Author's Note:**

> This is for [fallingforkonoha](http://fallingforkonoha.tumblr.com/) They prompted: KakaIru, Angst and Kakashi opening up to Iruka about Rin.
> 
> My first KakaIru! I really hope you like this short short work! I hope I did what you wanted even though i skirted the edges a bit! I SO COULD HAVE MADE THIS LONGER but it's election day and i'm stressed.

Kakashi awakens in a cold sweat. His chest is heaving; his throat burns as though he’s been screaming and he can’t make his one opened eye focus. He’s aware of strong hands on his shoulders holding him down and every instinct in his body is screaming at him to fight; to kill.

He doesn’t. Logically he knows he went to sleep in his bed, beside Iruka. There’s a strong part of his brain holding him still and trying to control his breathing, because it doesn’t want a repeat of the first time this happened. He doesn’t want to hurt Iruka and he knows Iruka is the only one who would be above him whispering calm nothings.

Kakashi closes his eyes and breathes in Iruka’s scent. His limbs release their tension, but his heart continues its hammering rhythm as the leftover images pass behind his eyelids.

“It’s okay. I’m here. I have you, Kashi.” Iruka’s breath ghosts over Kakashi’s unmasked nose with the words and it leeches the last bit of tension from his body.

_It was only a dream._ The same dream. The one he’s had over and over for many, many years. He’d call it a nightmare but it’s not even that; more of a memory. _A ghost_.

The weight of Iruka’s hands leave his shoulders, and he feels the other man shift to settle back down beside him. Kakashi takes a deep breath and rolls over to face him, eyes still closed.

He opens them slowly and takes in Iruka’s calm features in a tired routine. The room is light enough that he can make out the scar over Iruka’s nose, and Kakashi gently reaches out to trace it.

Iruka smiles, “You good?”

Kakashi nods, letting his hand trail over and move loose strands of chestnut hair from Iruka’s cheek.

He’s okay now. He’s always okay now. Unlike before when he would wake up to nothing, panting and screaming, sometimes even out of his bed and on his feet, attack ready. Now he wakes up to this; to Iruka and to this calming ritual of caresses and soft words.

It wasn’t always this easy. The establishment of this routine has been hard. The first time Kakashi had agreed to let Iruka sleep next to him he had tried to warn Iruka that sometimes he wakes up… _violently_. After Iruka saw just how violently Kakashi had expected him to bolt, both from the house and from their budding relationship. Instead Iruka had stayed, blood dripping down one cheek and tried to comfort Kakashi with no fear present where it should have been. He pushed forward night after night taking Kakashi’s night terrors as more of a challenge than an obstacle.

Iruka considers the way he can sense Kakashi’s first anxious twitches even in his sleep, and respond to them now a victory.

Kakashi considers Iruka himself as a victory; so strong, so beautiful. He’s willing to suffer through this with Kakashi night after night, and not once has he asked Kakashi what the dreams are about.

He’d tell him if he asked. He needs to tell him, but he’s never told anyone before. Kakashi’s chest clenches with the realization of how much he trusts Iruka. It pushes words from his mouth before he can stop himself. “You’ve never asked me what I dream about; why I’m like this.”

Iruka brings his hand up to gently clasp Kakashi’s hand that’s still on his cheek and he twines their fingers together. “I figured if I needed to know, you’d tell me.”

Kakashi sighs. The images of his dream float through his head again. It always starts the way it actually happened, with Rin in front of him. Sometimes she’s just standing there, and Kakashi is screaming, trying to kill his own chakra, trying to will his body to move around hers. Sometimes it’s already happened and there’s blood, so much blood. No matter what, he’s always screaming, even though he doesn’t remember actually uttering a word. He just remembers the shock, and the way she’d whispered his name as her life left her.

He blinks the images from his mind and looks at Iruka. “I want to tell you…I just.” He pauses, “I just don’t know how to talk about it.”

Iruka squeezes his hand tight and scoots a bit closer until they’re noses are almost touching. “You don’t have to. Not right now.”

Kakashi bites the inside of his lip to keep it from trembling. “You have a right to know. You’ve done so much for me and…and I love you. I’ve already opened up more of my world to you than I have to any other person. You deserve to know. I want you to.”

Iruka sneaks his free hand under Kakashi’s cheek that rest against the pillow and runs his thumb over the scar that’s etched there. “Shh. Don’t push yourself to tell me tonight. I know how hard it is to open up. Take your time.” He pauses to press a small kiss to Kakashi’s lips. “I’m not going anywhere.”

Kakashi can feel tears threatening his eyes, so he closes them and presses his cheek into Iruka’s hand. He will tell him, he has to, if not now then soon. “I’ll tell you. I promise.”

Iruka’s thumb catches the one tear that manages to escape. “I know.” He whispers, breath mingling with Kakashi’s. “But for now, let’s go back to sleep.”

Kakashi nods and allows himself to be pulled tighter against Iruka. He can confess tomorrow.

With Iruka’s hand in his own he knows he won’t dream. At least for the rest of tonight.

 

FIN.

**Author's Note:**

> :) find me at [Sitboi](http://sitboi.tumblr.com/)


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